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Mon, 02 Mar 2015 20:13:12 +0000en-UShourly1http://wordpress.org/?v=4.1.122 Entrepreneurs Explain How They Came Up With Their Business Namehttp://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/03/02/22-entrepreneurs-explain-how-they-came-up-with-their-business-name/
http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/03/02/22-entrepreneurs-explain-how-they-came-up-with-their-business-name/#commentsMon, 02 Mar 2015 20:13:12 +0000http://hear.ceoblognation.com/?p=13532What’s in a name? Would a rose called by any other name sell just as well? Coming up with a name for your business is just as important as the business idea itself. A name not only identifies you, but it can also serve to set you apart from your competitors and reflect your values. We asked some CEOs, Entrepreneurs, and Business owners about how they named their company and this is what they had to say.

1) An Acronym

The PEOPLE Academy name came from an internationally trademarked acronym based on the word PEOPLE. The acronym stands for Performance, Efficacy, Ownership, Possibilities, Linkage and Evidence. These six words form everything we do whether it is work or life. The PEOPLE Chronicles is the same – these are stories that people are telling that impact their performance, their efficacy, their ownership in their story, what’s possible for them, how they link their stories to their daily lives and the evidence they need to see to know that everything is working. That’s how we can up with the PEOPLE Academy and The PEOPLE Chronicles.

2) The Opposite

I actually had a law firm partner tell me just after opening my business that I named it after the deja vu strip club in a neighboring town. I didn’t. Here is how I named my law business. Vujà Dé is the opposite of déjà vu and means to see life from a new perspective. Prior to opening my law business, I worked in a collegiate trademark licensing firm. I gave a presentation once to the partners as the company was on the brink of making a number of serious changes. My idea was to have them table the “but we’ve always done it this way” for the duration of the presentation — hence vujà dé perspective. Fast forward five years when I was wracking my brain trying to brand and name my law business I woke up at 2am with vujà dé in my brain and immediately knew that was the name! It means to see a situation from a fresh perspective and that was at the core of what I was creating.

3) Derivative of our Products

For Vint & York, choosing the name was a derivative of our own products: Vintage inspired eyewear designed in New York. Each piece of eyewear with the Vint & York name is designed in New York and inspired by the 1920s, a time when artistic exploration was celebrated and individuals knew how to carry themselves.

4) I Don’t Know Where to Start

I had started and sold a few businesses, and everyone would always tell me how they would love to start a business. When I asked them why they didn’t, the common answer was ‘I just don’t know where to start.’ I decided to start a business that would help people start and grow their own businesses, and the obvious name (that luckily was available), was ‘The Starters Club.’

5) A, B or C

As a direct sales company we knew we were going to be on an alphabetized list and wanted to be on the top of that list. Our intention was to start our business name with an A, B, or C. Our company sells organizing products and products that simplify your life. We share many different uses for one product which is very “clever.” Hence the name Clever Container was born!

6) Custom Application

We started with a list of keywords (including “transparency” and “product information” from our mission statement). Then we actually built a custom application that pulled hundreds of related words from Google’s n-gram database. Once the program generated 2-word names, it checked them for domain availability. We fell in love with the name “OpenLabel” as soon as we saw it, and ended up sticking with that, despite that we could not get the domain.

7) Strategic Process

Coming up with Ardour as our business name was a strategic process. We wanted our name to express the reason why we started our online boutique. We also wanted it to be a symbol of inspiration for our customers. Once we established what our brand would represent we started brainstorming words that delivered the message. Ardour is defined as enthusiasm, passion, intense devotion, all of which fuel our fire to do what we love everyday.

8) Creative Spelling

It’s not easy coming up with an interesting company name that is unique, will express the feel you desire, and will also be memorable. We are a company founded by women for women. Our clients are reconnecting to themselves and life. We wanted our name to imply movement, forward certainly, but other directions or ways to move, as well. During our brainstorming we kept coming back to dancing, stepping, moving. During this process we were actually having fun one day with putting names of our siblings (there are six of us) together. Through this idea we tried fusing our first names. We are Stephanie and Danette. Sisters and founders of DanStep. The name also gave us the tagline for how we move women through the process of Deciding on a goal and taking Action to achieve it, which then allows them to take their Next STEP.

9) Helpful Yet Authoritative

When I started my business, it was focused on editing and proofreading, so I wanted to call it The Grammar Nazi, in homage to Seinfeld’s Soup Nazi. Alas, when I shared the thought with my Jewish friends, they vetoed it, stating there would be a shelf life on the pop-culture reference. My husband, a nurse, suggested The Grammar Doctors since doctors are helpful yet authoritative. It stuck — and I was able to create medical-themed promotions around it!

10) Play with Metaphors

In the early days of The Book Midwife, I used to explain how we got the book out of people and into reality. I tried ‘book coach’ but coaching was not so well understood in 2002. I found myself saying “Everyone has a book inside them. But sometimes they need a little help getting it out”. It usually led to a few questions, but one time I added “like a midwife!” and the person I was talking to really got it. He liked the metaphor so much, he signed up to get his book done, saying it was the only time he would have a midwife. He also helped me trademark the brand, which you always want to do when you hit on a good one!

11) Blank Sheet with 2 Columns

I’ve named several companies over the years and I always use the same process to develop a name that incorporates several ideas while still being short and sweet. For my design firm Pixelkeet, I wanted a name that was cute, quirky, and incorporated tech—something a girly nerd like me could relate to. So I got a blank sheet of paper and divided it into two columns. In the first column I made a list of words that were related to technology. Then in the second column I listed things that are cute or fun. When listing words, I write down everything I think of, even when they seem dumb or sound strange. I include everything because I don’t want to break my flow of coming up with words and because even if I don’t like a word in its entirety, I might use pieces of it to make a new word. Once I think I have enough words to work with, I start breaking them up and putting them back together in new ways. In the case of Pixelkeet, my cute/fun column included the word “parakeet” and my tech column included the word “pixel”. After trying a variety of combinations with the word “parakeet” (I really wanted to work parakeets into my company name) I came up with Pixelkeet and knew instantly that it was the right name for my company.

12) Pretty & Well

I came up for my business name “Pretty Wellness” because I used to choose healthy habits in an effort to look “Pretty”, but now I make these changes in order to be “well.” My website and social media channels are about making small steps toward health, happiness and being beautiful organically. I gather tips and tales about healthy living including clean eating, active living and non-toxic living. I’m a 2x cancer survivor that embraces life and focuses on all the modalities to lie and thrive in life.

13) Getting Creative

Our business is children’s decor and interiors related so we originally had our heart set on ‘Little Spaces’. However as the dot com was not available we had to get extra creative. As soon as ‘Lil’ came out of my mouth as a substitute for ‘Little’ we knew that was it and to our delight it was available. It is 100% in line with our original thought and to be honest we love it even more as ‘Lil’ adds the extra cuteness factor which is totally appropriate for our line of work

14) Award for Leadership

I named it Bronze Star Fitness because I was in the Army and was awarded the Bronze Star Medal for leading troops in Afghanistan. Our specialization is boot camp classes so I wanted it to have something to do with the military. My college, Wellesley college, has an alumna Facebook group that i crowd sourced for which logo to use. It was great having everyone’s opinion.

15) Define What I Do

Since I am a botanical perfumer I choose the word “illuminated” to define what I do because of the reference to bringing to light how fragrances use to be made and 15th century illuminated manuscripts. I eventually added Roxana to make the name more authentic.

16) Easy Days

As a school teacher, I created a product that helps children have easier days, and so it was just natural to call my product and company Easy Daysies. Easy Daysies started off our kitchen table, launched two days after my third child was born. Easy Daysies is now available in over 1200 retail locations across North America and has won twelve awards, including inciting a bidding war between all five investors on a popular TV entrepreneur show.

17) Descriptive Yet Creative

We manufacture an antimicrobial foot protective tape you wear wherever you’re barefoot or with sockless footwear. My business partner and I struggled for a long time trying to come up with a descriptive yet creative name. Finally, my partner came up with the name, Skindels, because our product is basically a skin-sandal. We knew that anyone who saw the name would immediately have a general idea of what our product is. This name also was creative and unique enough to differentiate us from similar products or companies.

18) Chinese Foundation

I was starting a cash back, coupon and product comparison company. I wanted the logo to represent what we did and when somebody looked at the logo they would have an idea of what we did. I also wanted a symbol, feeling of making money that was somewhat universal and known and especially known in China, since China was a huge market I wanted to enter. So I came up with the name of CashBackCat.com and my logo represents the Asian Fortune Cat or maneki-neko (Japanese Fortune Cat), the Fortune Cat has been adopted in China and all of Asia. It is usually at the front door or near the cash register of Asian businesses. The Fortune Cat has a right arm the waves or beckons a customer to come in and shop or spend money. Without directly marketing to the Chinese market and only marketing in the United States, about half of my members are Chinese, which is proof my logo and name work.

19) Surname

My husband and I spent almost a week in deciding for a company name. We came up with a list of almost 50 plus something names that we thought would sound good or would rank high up in the search engines for our business category which is website design and development. I met my husband two years ago online through a dating site. I am from Philippines and he is a dad of two from Latvia and here we are, married in UK. Anyway, we both have a strong inclination towards computer and we both love doing online tasks especially building creative websites. I am a nurse by profession but in my heart I always wanted to study computers. Luckily, I met a guy with the same passion as I have and that is how Magin Web Design came true. My husband used to have his own company which he called skAivars and having been married to me, we had to find something that will bind us together in business. We tried to combine our names Gette-var Ai-geo, Geo-var and every other possible variation but nothing really sound right. So finally we decided to use my husband’s surname which is now my surname of course. My maiden name was Lee and we all know that there are far too strong brands out there with my name so yeah, we choose my husband’s surname. Our business is called Magin which is my husband’s surname. We all know that a short, memorable name is one of the strongest characteristics a business name should have We are still trying to compete with other people with that surname out there but when it comes to website design and development, we are getting there.

21) Fluid Documents

Documents are normally very monolithic, fixed objects. Their pages are immutable and indivisibly; they come to you as a finished, solid, static product. I wanted to change that and make it possible to rearrange content, connect ideas, pull pieces apart, squish sections together. Basically, I wanted to make documents fluid, allowing the content to be rearranged and reshaped as the user desired. And I wanted the experience of interacting with content to flow naturally. What has a fluid and flowing feel? Liquid. Hence the name LiquidText for our multitouch document manipulation product.

22) My Love & Compatibility

I’ve always loved penguins, and have collected penguin figurines and ornaments since my teens. My fate with penguins was sealed when a friend told me a particular story many years ago. In the wild, he said, hungry penguins will push and gather around a hole in the ice, but being fearful of predators, they will not dive in until the first intrepid (or unfortunate) penguin either jumps, or is pushed, into the water. Then, if no blood rises to the surface, the others will know it’s safe and will themselves enter the water to go fishing. This may or may not be true, but he then told me, “Claire, YOU are always the penguin that either jumps or is pushed into the water! So, after many years of working in marketing and promotions of one sort or another, I was ready to “make the leap” and dive into the icy waters of the entrepreneurial sea … and of course, “penguins” simply had to be included. At first, I liked Fat Penguin as a business name, but at that time I planned to work with mainstream Country artists, and the urban slang “p-h-a-t” was prevalent, creating and imaging challenge for Fat Penguin. So, my attorney and I simply sat at her computer and plugged in possibilities until we found a fun combination. When we hit on ‘laughing,’ it seemed wonderfully compatible with my own nature … and Laughing Penguin Publicity & Consulting took flight. In 2015, we’re celebrating a decade in business, and still, some folks may forget my name, but I’m delighted to report that with a memorable business name, they always remember to refer “the penguin girl!”

These videos are for entrepreneurs, startups and business owners to start their week off on the right foot. If there’s one word that you should know, it is hustle.

]]>http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/03/02/monday-motivation-hustle-hunger/feed/0South Africa-Native Transforms Business to Fill a Gap in the Markethttp://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/27/south-africa-native-transforms-business-fill-gap-market/
http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/27/south-africa-native-transforms-business-fill-gap-market/#commentsFri, 27 Feb 2015 14:00:21 +0000http://hear.ceoblognation.com/?p=13455You never end up where you thought you would. It’s a running theme with business owners and entrepreneurs. You may start out with the intention to create one thing, but soon enough you realize that you’re on a completely different path. South Africa-native Neil Gross, founder of Chef Works, filling a gap in the market led him down a new path for his business. We spoke with Neil to learn more about his company, how a family owned business operates, and where he sees business going in the next few years.

What is your background and why did you start your business?

Then known as J. Gross and Co., Chef Works is a family business that started in 1964 selling protective clothing to miners in South Africa. We attended a trade show in Las Vegas in the mid 90’s and found a gap in the market to supply quality clothing to the culinary marketplace. Today Chef Works is the world’s leading manufacturer of culinary apparel with 18 global distribution centers, a customer base that spans 6 continents and over 60 countries, and annual sales of over $100 million. Since the beginning, our focus has remained the same — to provide high quality fabrication, innovative design techniques, and a fashion-forward sensibility all at the most competitive price in the industry.

Tell us about the early days of starting your business and how did you develop it to where it is now?

Initially we tried to sell through distributors who, for the most part, weren’t interested in working with a new manufacturer. As such, we were forced to go out and sell directly to the chefs themselves. As it turned out, this was the best decision we ever made. This led to us being able to develop a brand that is now very well known and respected throughout our industry, and growing in popularity on a daily basis.

How has it been running a family owned business?

Family businesses tend to bring out the best and worst among family members. It is critical in a family business to keep re-inventing yourself as the company evolves – otherwise the company evolves without you. The core glue of a family business is the family and it forces you to stay relevant and ever growing. Knowing that we all go through good and bad times together is very comforting. There is never a question that you have family watching your back.

What are some future trends in the global hospitality apparel marketplace and how are you playing a role in shaping that?

Certainly one of the largest trends is the standardization of products to leading Hotel and Foodservice partners who are looking for the same look worldwide. As one of the few culinary apparel companies that supply worldwide to over 60 countries, Chef Works is the ideal partner to assist in this standardization process. Chef Works is, and will continue to be, at the forefront of design and innovative product within our industry, including the launch of over 100 new products over the last 12 months.

Where do you see your business in the next 5 years?

Chef Works’ journey has just begun. We have built a business that is scalable and fully automated with systems in place that are equal to, if not better than, many public companies. We have a highly motivated team that believes in the product and the future success of the company. The only constant in our business is change, and as such, we will continue to evolve and grow our product offerings so that our customers always have the most current designs to choose from. Since the beginning we have never taken our customer and their needs for granted, and this will continue to be the cornerstone of our business moving forward.

]]>http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/27/south-africa-native-transforms-business-fill-gap-market/feed/020 Entrepreneurs Explain What Entrepreneurship Means to Themhttp://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/27/20-entrepreneurs-explain-what-entrepreneurship-means-to-them/
http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/27/20-entrepreneurs-explain-what-entrepreneurship-means-to-them/#commentsFri, 27 Feb 2015 13:42:29 +0000http://hear.ceoblognation.com/?p=13515Being an entrepreneur is a source of pride. It also evidences an individual with a huge amount of discipline and focus to be able to build a business a lot of times from just an idea. It is the ambition of an entrepreneur that built the most profitable and successful companies. The only issue is that the word entrepreneurship can often vary from person to person.

1) Entrepreneurship = Responsibility to Succeed

Some people just want to be their own boss. Although being my own boss is nice, I started on the path of Entrepreneurship because I wanted to use my ability to create value for myself and others without requiring permission from anyone else. As a result, becoming an Entrepreneur meant empowering myself with the responsibility to succeed. I also see entrepreneurship as a process of creating financial and personal freedom through the creation and growth of a business. Don’t become an entrepreneur if you want less responsibility.

2) Overcoming Adversity

Don’t underestimate the challenge of solving a difficult problem. When I started Brewla Bars with my sister we knew that consumers were looking for healthier and natural alternatives to the products they already purchase. What we had yet to understand were all the barriers that would challenge us to bring our product to market. We worked with advisors to teach us and prepare us, but nobody can forsee everything. More than anything our unrelenting persistence and passion for our products has kept us going. As an entrepreneur facing adversity is unavoidable, you must always believe in yourself and your product to overcome the biggest hurdles.

3) 2 Things

Entrepreneurship means two things to me. The first, is being in full control of the money I make. I’m the one determining my worth and value. It all comes down to me, based on the amount I want to work, in order to drive the money coming in. The second thing is that it’s about owning my own schedule. I determine where I go, and when I actually go, and how long I want to be from my kids, etc. I’m not on anyone else’s clock but my own.

4) Risk Takers

If you are a true entrepreneur, there is probably no separation between your work life and personal life. I don’t believe that entrepreneurship is a choice, you either are, or you’re not, and there’s always that one defining moment that forces you to to say ‘take the plunge.’ True entrepreneurs are risk takers, and they’re not afraid to fail, and actually find great value in failure. Entrepreneurs feel caged in a traditional corporate setting, hate living by someone else’s rules and standards and walk a path that’s all their own. Entrepreneurs are innovators, job creators and truly the backbone of every major economy. I’m fascinated by entrepreneurs, and feel that we all have a great deal learn from each and every one of them. Their stories never get old, or redundant and with each new entrepreneur I meet, it inspires me to want to do more, and be better.

5) Intellectual Passions & Market Needs

For me, entrepreneurship is about finding the perfect intersection between one’s intellectual passions and market needs. I love words. I love thinking about communication. Language skills have value in the workplace, and I and my similarly language-loving business partner — who also happens to be my husband — have for 15 years now enjoyed pursuing that intersection through our communication skills training firm.

6) Empowerment

Entrepreneurship is the ultimate act of self-empowerment! I enjoy the opportunity to be 100% accountable for my own actions, where I have nothing but myself to stand in my way. The realization of self-empowerment is an amazing place to be, and flows through all aspects of my life – as a mother, a wife, a business owner, an employer – I can be there for the things that matter most in my life, but to do so I have to employ solid self-discipline, systems and delegation skills. I have the opportunity to build relationships with some of the most amazing clients on this planet, network and help other amazing business owners, all while continuing to learn and grow myself.

7) Flexibility

When I started, entrepreneurship meant certain ideals for me like being the master of my own destiny and being a firm creating hand in bringing something of value and enjoyment to the world. In my case with my product ­invoking a dance-inspired sense of beauty and accomplishment and improving upon fit and design issues I experienced with other activewear. As a woman, entrepreneurship also meant the potential flexibility to dictate my own schedule should I choose to have children. At the time, I was seeing my business school peers being asked to jump on planes every week well into their pregnancies. I decided that was not for me. Now that I am running the business, the meaning of entrepreneurship has expanded from an ideal to a tutelage. I’ve learned that entrepreneurship is the ultimate life and business coach. It¹s a tough love kind of a coach but a very good and fair one if you’re willing to stick it out. Entrepreneurship very quickly lays bare any kind of character or business weaknesses the entrepreneur might have, especially if you’re a solopreneur. Shy about selling? Work on it or you won¹t have a business. Miserably down about yourself because sales are not what you hoped this period? Well, maybe there’s deeper issue of self-worth and attachment you need to examine before you can more forward. Lacking in humility during manufacturing screw-ups? Well, in the day you spent dealing with your anger and frustration, even if you are in the right, that¹s energy better spent fixing the problem and addressing customers. There have been so many business and character lessons I’ve learned from the hand-to-hand combat world of bootstrap entrepreneurship. On the bad days, it presents a kick in the head and a test of my determination. If I make it through, it reinforces my conviction and character. On the good days, I learn more about discipline and focus and our customers and what makes them happy.

8) Do Whatever is Best

I love being an entrepreneur because it’s insanely freeing – I am my own boss, so I don’t need to worry about creating an Excel that makes my boss happy or meeting an arbitrary deadline – I just do whatever is best to advance my company. Knowing that the success of my business is tied to the decision that my co-founders and I make is extraordinarily motivating and freeing.

9) Think Differently & Constantly Working

I have started many businesses in the last 28 years, some failed and some became highly successful. Entrepreneurs think differently than non-entrepreneurs. You are working and thinking about business all the time.There is no distinction between business and personal – this is all part of one, your business. There is no such idea of working eight hours a day or forty hours a week. Hours of work are not in your thoughts. You work until you are completely exhausted or your eyes are blurry from being on the computer too long, each day. You don’t work for the weekends, the weekends work for you and are a time to really get something done without distractions. Being an entrepreneur means you eat, sleep, walk, talk and everything else for your business. Your business is your baby and you need to nurture it in the early days, through the teenage years and adulthood. It will keep you up until 3:00 o’clock in the morning and force you awake at 4:00 o’clock in the morning. Your passion for your business will sometimes get others to question your sanity. For you the business is ubiquitous and perpetual. Saturdays and Sundays are just another extension of work days. As an entrepreneur you will do almost anything for business success. With my current company, a two year old start-up, CashBackCat.com I have worked three days without sleep, minimal food and three pots of coffee. As an entrepreneur you do whatever it takes to get the job done.

10) Relentless Pursuit

Entrepreneurship is the relentless pursuit of opportunity without regard to resources currently controlled. To me anyone can be an entrepreneur, all it takes is courage, hard work and persistence. You don’t have to have a million dollars in revenue or have a million users on you app to be an entrepreneur. What you really need is a burning desire to succeed and a relentless drive to stop at nothing.

11) Action, Not Reaction

Entrepreneurship to me, means knowing how to act, not react. So many people fall into the rut of reacting immediately to a situation, instead of taking a step back, assessing why an event occurred, and then taking action. To be an entrepreneur, you must have clear vision – understand what it is you want to do, and then do it! There are obstacles everyday hindering your ability to succeed, but with the right mindset and attitude and a deep breath, no problem is too large.

12) Risk

Entrepreneurship is about risk. There is this chasm between a “wantrepreneur” and a “entrepreneur.” There are a lot of people who want to be an entrepreneur because they look at an entrepreneur and think, “Oh their life is so great! They have their own great business,” and I think that is not a realistic perspective. What makes an entrepreneur stand out from a wantrepreneur is that willingness to jump even when there are still risks, challenges, and unknowns to face. I don’t think I fully appreciated the risks and choices I was making when I made them…entrepreneurs are often highly irrational people. I say this because a logical person would not have made the choices I made as an entrepreneur knowing what I know now. It’s completely irrational because the risk profile is so great, not just any person would jump into entrepreneurship. But those risks, and those risk takers, are what makes entrepreneurship so rewarding when the business thrives and grows.

13) Responsibility

Entrepreneurship boils down to full responsibility. The risk of starting anew and alone and living afraid is on me. Save a few external variables like the dollar rate, natural disasters (earthquakes are common in Chile), the failures and success I find along the way is in great part up to me. Over the last 18 months, our company grew from 25 to 45 employees and my favorite part of entrepreneurship is striving toward successful communication and clear lines of responsibility from top down, but at the end of the day, year or entrepreneurial roller coaster, the buck stops at me. It is easier when I hold myself responsible for the good and bad times because I am the only person I can truly change, whether it be my attitude, know how, hiring or form of communication with my team.

14) The People

Entrepreneurship is about people. It’s about you, and what you can accomplish as a person. It’s about camaraderie and teamwork among multiple individuals. It’s about arguments with your business partners, for the greater good of your company and livelihoods. It’s about leveraging people you currently know to meet more people that can rally behind you and help you and your team. It’s about giving a first-time pitch to hundreds of onlookers, and seeing 5-10 of your good friends smiling wide in the sea of people that you didn’t expect to come. Entrepreneurship is about all of the hard work, cash crunches, and rejections being all the more worth it in the end!

15) Worthwhile Journey

Entrepreneurship means a journey worth traveling, stepping out on a limb and just taking a leap of faith, just having the courage in yourself and determination to succeed. Embracing every sale and review as a step forward in a right direction. I followed my dreams that I had since the age of 12, that my fashions will be on the red carpet. In November 2013, my dreams came into fruition when Cyrene Tankard, the youngest of Tankard Family on Bravo TV’s Thicker than Water wore my dresses to all of her red carpet events. That experience led to her wearing my apparels every Sunday currently on Thicker than Water’s Season 2. Entrepreneurship means surreal to the infinite power imaginable just amazing.

16) What Would Make This Better?

I always tell my kids that entrepreneurship is simply a desire and a willingness to answer the question: “What would make this BETTER?” Every person on earth plays a central role in the history of the world, and so we all have an opportunity not only to make life better but to make our mark personally, as well. Entrepreneurs understand that principle and despite fear, suffering, setbacks, and failures, keep moving forward. The gift of fear is faith and wisdom. A true entrepreneur can never stop being an entrepreneur. They will use that faith and wisdom either to propel their idea forward or to pivot in a different direction altogether. Committed to making the world BETTER, we cast vision for what’s possible.

17) Intention & Impact

Intention and Impact. It means the world to be able to provide a leadership role , with core values and Intention while Impacting other lives in a positive manner. The Entrepreneurial “drive” creates such focus on those 2 actions, only good comes of it. Our local impact supporting out global initiatives is changing the world one day at a time and I wouldn’t have it any other way…

18) Breaking Rules & Taking Risks

Entrepreneurship means breaking rules and taking risks. Entrepreneurs face challenges every day as they follow their dreams, and have to adjust and adapt to whatever is thrown at them. They enjoy successes, weather storms, and make sacrifices. And, they’re resilient, so few challenges keep them down.

19) Flexibility

Being an entrepreneur allows me to be the kind of mom that I want to be. As a single mom and entrepreneur, my life is 24/7. I work from the minute I wake up until the minute I go to sleep, but I also have great flexibility with my schedule. I am able to attend sporting events, class parties, and spend quality time with my son. I have changed my entrepreneurial path as my son grows to ensure that I can spend the most time that I can with him. When my son was young, I owned an indoor playground, so I could take him to work with me. Once he entered elementary school, I decided to sell the indoor playground and am now creating a mobile app for moms. Making this change allows me to be home more and I am also able to follow my passion of helping other moms.

20) Thinking & Your Thoughts

Being an entrepreneur means accumulating wealth through the materialization of your thoughts. To be able to think something in your mind, work towards it, see it manifest and then greatly benefit from it financially is one of the most fulfilling processes in the world. Being an entrepreneur means removing limits and having the freedom to build, create and to be authentic. Being an entrepreneur can offer more personal security, more employment opportunities and maintain the energy flow of money both in the economy and in individual pockets. The process of becoming an entrepreneur and even a wealthy entrepreneur is a process that everyone should experience. The process helps to create standards and codes of conduct in a community.

]]>http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/27/20-entrepreneurs-explain-what-entrepreneurship-means-to-them/feed/0Business Helps Entrepreneurs Get Access to Funds Fasterhttp://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/26/business-helps-entrepreneurs-get-access-funds-faster/
http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/26/business-helps-entrepreneurs-get-access-funds-faster/#commentsThu, 26 Feb 2015 17:00:46 +0000http://hear.ceoblognation.com/?p=13466In the world of small businesses, keeping track of your finances is top priority. Anything which makes the job easier is a great help to entrepreneurs and business owners alike. Eyal Shinar, CEO of Fundbox, helps entrepreneurs get access to their funds prior to invoice net terms. We sat down with Eyal to learn more about Fundbox, his background, and advice for aspiring entrepreneurs.

What’s your background and why did you start your business?

Prior to creating Fundbox, I worked extensively in finance, machine learning, SMBs and SaaS. I was formally Vice President at Battery Ventures where I led numerous projects and investments in those specific areas. My co-founder and I started Fundbox to address the biggest pain point for small businesses – cash flow gaps. I wanted to create a quick, accessible and safe way for small businesses of all kinds, especially healthy, growing businesses, constrained by cash flow, to get access to working capital so that they could continue to invest in their business even while waiting on invoices to be paid.

Fundbox is a bit of a personal mission for me. My mother previously ran a small business so I got a first-hand glimpse of the challenges that small business owners face. I wanted to create a quick, easy and safe tool that would help small businesses run more efficiently without causing any disruption to the company’s workflow.

Tell us about Fundbox

Fundbox offers business owners a simple way to fix their cash flow by advancing payments for their outstanding invoices. 32% of B2B small businesses reported having inadequate cash flow that was preventing company growth, while 14% cited late payments as their biggest business challenge. With Fundbox, in approximately 24 hours, a small business can have working capital available in their bank account to invest in their business.

How can data-science and business analytics close the cash flow gap between accounts receivable and accounts payable?

Fundbox uses proprietary technology, which is based on data science and machine learning, to alleviate the administrative overhead and low success rate associated with trying to get working capital. The platform enables a small business to access funds immediately – closing the gap between invoices being issued and paid – allowing the business to run more efficiently.

What advice would you give to entrepreneurs and business owners?

While not all advice is good for all entrepreneurs, I would absolutely urge business owners to focus on what they are most passionate about. You must live and breathe your business for it to be a success. Also, surround yourself with employees and a team of people who are equally as driven and motivated as you are and who are fully invested in the success of your business. Nothing can beat a strong team.

]]>http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/26/business-helps-entrepreneurs-get-access-funds-faster/feed/0Digital Marketing Veteran Helps Companies Make the Leap into Latin Americahttp://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/26/digital-marketing-veteran-helps-companies-make-leap-latin-america/
http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/26/digital-marketing-veteran-helps-companies-make-leap-latin-america/#commentsThu, 26 Feb 2015 14:00:38 +0000http://hear.ceoblognation.com/?p=13452Aside from starting their first business, one of the biggest leaps an entrepreneur can make is expanding his or her business to another country. New territory means new issues to deal with. Do consumers in other countries want your product? How do you deal with language differences? What are the rules and regulations in other parts of the world? All of these questions can be tricky to find answers to. For Gastón Taratuta, founder of Internet Media Services, Inc. (IMS), helping companies navigate this transition is what his business is all about. We sat down with Gastón to learn more about his business, their partnership with Apple, and tips for emerging entrepreneurs.

Why did you start your business?

To tell you the truth, I never thought I’d be an entrepreneur. Before I founded IMS, I was working for the largest Brazilian publishing company and I was managing the company’s Miami office. But then, they decided to close their Miami office and asked me to take on their advertising sales as a consultant. I was basically let go, in a way, but when one door closes, another opens. They wanted me to be their exclusive representative in the US, so I became this bridge between the US and Latin America for them. I saw this as an opportunity to found IMS, the first of its kind in offering guidance in digital marketing communications for fast-moving companies wishing to expand into Latin America.

What makes your business unique?

We help our partners find success in Latin America’s digital marketing ecosystem not just via commercial advertising sales but by helping them to navigate the legal, marketing and cultural nuances of the region. When I first started IMS, I knew that Latin America would soon be one of the first places that companies would look to to scale their business but I also knew there would be many obstacles. The language barrier was the least of my worries – although I’ve seen some awfully translated billboards over the years! These companies needed expertise in country-specific nuances– marketing, legal and cultural. When I first started IMS, my expertise in Brazilian business and culture became this marketable commodity for US companies. Then, IMS grew to become a leader in partnering with businesses wishing to expand into the various countries in the region. Brazil is very different from Argentina, which is very different from Mexico, and that’s what a lot of US companies don’t fully understand. So we educated them on how to navigate those differences in 16 different countries. I like to say, education is a currency. That’s what we sell and that’s what makes us unique.

How did you land a partnership with Apple?

Over the past few years, IMS has established a successful reputation as the digital marketing company that brings Silicon Valley to LatAm. We’ve been working with a number of leading global platforms – from Twitter, to LinkedIn, Spotify, Waze, Foursquare, and Crackle – and our partnership with Apple was a natural progression of this. Last month, we announced that we’ll be working with Apple to extend sales of iAd through Brazil and Mexico. We’ve been successful in demonstrating to the digital industry outside of Latin America that this region hold tremendous growth opportunity and that, with the right partner, the challenges that this region can pose can be successfully resolved.

Congratulations on 10 years in business! How have you been able to stay in business for so long?

Thank you, I agree, ten years is a long time, especially in digital! You see some digital companies rise and fall three times over in ten years, and part of it is luck, but the other part is adapting to the market. The digital market has changed so much in ten years, and you have to change with it. How we’ve adapted is that IMS has evolved from a services company, to a product company with services. We pivoted away from only offering services, towards offering our clients’ products as part of our marketing services to different clients. As Silicon Valley tech companies wanted to scale their business, we offered to sell their advertising channels in the region. Last year, we acquired two content and creative agencies to better integrate such components into our value proposition and meet the growing demands of agencies and brands. We also launched our IMS Connect division, a new marketplace concept that provides comprehensive programmatic and audience-targeted media buying. We have evolved to become a digital marketing and communications company that offers both an expanded services component and serve the most relevant product channels.

What advice would you give to entrepreneurs and business owners?

I’d tell them that failing is probably the best thing that can ever happen to you, so embrace it. To me, success is when you continue with enthusiasm into your next project after failing. Success is measured by how you learn from your failures. Even if you have the best product right now, it will become obsolete if you don’t innovate. I failed when I wanted to replicate the model we had in Miami in the UK. The European market wasn’t ready for such a digital advertising model at the time. But instead of accepting defeat and shying away from our own expansion, I took the valuable insight I’d gained from my failure to figure out which industries were ready for our kind of approach. Of course, it was Silicon Valley.

What is your take on competition versus partnership?

Competition is, of course, very important but more so on a smaller scale. Within any market, competition is imperative, but on a global scale, partnership plays a bigger role in success. If you want to be a global player, you have to come to terms with the fact you don’t fully understand the world market and you need partners to help you do so. McDonalds, for example, initially failed when they first ventured into Latin America on their own. They eventually came back and didn’t fail a second time because they found a local partner. The world market is full of holes that you can only fill with partners. If you’re selling a product where you live, you know that landscape. But if you move out of your market to sell your product, you need to know the industry differences so that you can reach people fast. And at the end of the day, you are sure to learn the market quickly and efficiently with partners.

What future trends do you see in the Latin American market for technology companies?

Fifteen years ago, the entry to the Internet was the browser, then it became portals like Yahoo and AOL. Then I think the door to the Internet was search – which Google dominated – and nowadays it’s changed to apps. We interact and engage in real-time with Twitter, we listen to music with Spotify, we share our feelings through Facebook, we discuss our professional experience through LinkedIn, we make mobile payments through digital wallet apps. And we’ve been able to tap into that changing landscape over the last ten years. So it’s all about mobile in Latin America’s future. According to recent studies, 70% of internet connectivity will be mobile by 2020 in LatAm, which isn’t necessarily news. But we don’t visit portals anymore, we visit apps and that has serious implications on how we advertise nowadays. For example, Twitter became a content curator in a way, where users choose who they want to follow, paving the way for advertisers to be niche and specific in their marketing strategies. Whether it’s apps or the next new innovation, the IMS team is looking forward to partnering with tech firms to bring the latest and greatest to Latin American brands.

]]>http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/26/digital-marketing-veteran-helps-companies-make-leap-latin-america/feed/0Historic Neighborhood Helps Bolster Business in San Diegohttp://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/24/historic-neighborhood-helps-bolster-business-san-diego/
http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/24/historic-neighborhood-helps-bolster-business-san-diego/#commentsTue, 24 Feb 2015 14:00:03 +0000http://hear.ceoblognation.com/?p=13441America is often referred to as the melting pot. People from all over the world settle here and build communities, relationships, and, perhaps most importantly, businesses. Throughout the country there are communities which reflect the passion of those immigrants. In San Diego a community called Little Italy has remained a base for several generations of Italian business owners. Heapreneur sat down with Christopher Gomez-Pancucci, Little Italy Association District Manager to learn more about Little Italy and what makes the community so unique.

What is Little Italy and why is it important?

Little Italy San Diego is a unique cultural and historic neighborhood. In the 1920’s, this neighborhood in San Diego was the hub of international tuna fishing industry, the majority of which was done by Italian immigrants. However, due to the construction of Interstate-5 freeway, the tuna industry declined, 35% of Little Italy San Diego was destroyed and the neighborhood suffered for nearly 30 years. But, in the early 1990′s, established property owners and family-run business owners decided to take their fate into their own hands and clean-up and rebuild the neighborhood they loved and had lived in for generations—Little Italy San Diego was the first Little Italy in North America to do so.

Now Little Italy San Diego is one of the most beloved neighborhoods in San Diego and serves as a cultural, culinary and entrepreneurial hub, holding some of the biggest, most-loved festivals and events in the region.

What is the Little Italy Association?

The Little Italy Association is a non-profit 501(c)(3) corporation. It’s the only district management corporation of its kind in any Little Italy neighborhood in the United States. The Association has 28 board members comprised of property owners, residents, business owners and community-at-large representatives. The Association oversees and expedites the revitalization and beautification of the Little Italy neighborhood of San Diego.

The Little Italy Association has been reviving, for over 20 years, this neighborhood into a thriving destination unlike any other place in Southern California. Thanks to the Little Italy Association, San Diego’s Little Italy is now not only a model urban neighborhood for the City of San Diego, but is also serving as a model for the handful of Little Italy’s remaining throughout the country.

How is the American Dream alive in this community?

There are 75+ Italian business owners in the neighborhood, all from different generations. Little Italy San Diego has presented the perfect opportunity for first-generation businesses owners to live out their American Dream and start a successful business in San Diego because the community creates a since of family and a cultural environment with Italian and European influences throughout its 48 square-blocks. It makes Italians feel like they are a part of Italy, but out of Italy and in a stable environment where opportunities are endless and visibility to the world is possible. The Little Italy Association provides support and makes business owners feel secure when they are able to open their doors in a beautiful neighborhood.

What makes this community so unique?

The experience a visitor and local get when they are in Little Italy San Diego is unlike anything they can experience anywhere else. A normal day in the neighborhood could include savoring an authentic Italian espresso con panna from one of the dozens of quaint coffee shops, a treasure hunt of finding all the hidden famiglia recipes hidden on bronze markers in the sidewalks, watching the annual Stickball tournament in the streets with children and adults alike, indulging at one of the restaurants in the neighborhood, or just strolling up and down the streets visiting its many piazzas and public spaces, admiring the flower-lined sidewalks, twinkle lights wrapped from the lampposts and views of the marina and the neighborhood’s historic architecture. Little Italy has a way that makes individuals feel like they are a part of the community, making them want to come back or start their families here.

How is this community the same as Italy? How is it different?

Little Italy San Diego brings strong Italian culture to the neighborhood. There are piazzas with water fountains and public spaces throughout the neighborhood with tables and chairs that aren’t designated to any specific business, but there for the public to sit at and enjoy the surrounding environment, much like in Italia. When visitors and locals walk down the sidewalk, they are lined with restaurants’ front patios that have seating where a hostess is always outside the front of the restaurant greeting them in Italian! Over a majority of the restaurants are Italian and owned by an Italian, so the romantic language is constantly heard throughout the neighborhood. Cafés serve real Italian coffee and one can even choose to drink their espresso or macchiato standing at the bar (like a real Italian would do!). Ingredients, wines and coffee are even imported from Italy at select restaurants and cafés, giving visitors a true taste of Italy.

How important is community to building and growing a business?

One of the Little Italy Association’s largest focus is on growing and reviving the neighborhood. This neighborhood gem is cranking out many new construction and design projects throughout the area, aimed to beautify the community, promote public spaces, make room for more residents and provide space for incoming businesses. Little Italy continues to be the most coveted and desired neighborhoods in downtown San Diego, and much of it is due to projects that the Little Italy Association is putting in motion.

Piazza Famiglia is one of Little Italy’s newest and most special projects. The 10,000-square-foot piazza broke ground on December 1 and will be completed in 2016. This project will bring the largest public piazza to the neighborhood—connecting W. Date Street between India & Columbia Street, as well as open up 13,600-square-feet of restaurant and commercial space, and 3,000-square-feet of rental space.

This motivational video is for entrepreneurs, startups and business owners to start their week off on the right foot.

]]>http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/23/morning-motivation-circumstances/feed/09 Entrepreneurs Explain Their Biggest Accomplishments in 2015http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/19/8-entrepreneurs-explain-their-biggest-accomplishments-in-2015/
http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/19/8-entrepreneurs-explain-their-biggest-accomplishments-in-2015/#commentsThu, 19 Feb 2015 22:14:31 +0000http://hear.ceoblognation.com/?p=13500Owning and running a business is tough. There are many ups and even more downs. It’s always good to take some time when there are “wins” to celebrate them so we decided to ask some entrepreneurs for some of their biggest accomplishments this year.

1) Shark Attack

After four tumultuous years of building my startup with the wrong partners, lots of bad decisions and some major rookie mistakes, I was determined to find a way to take my business to the next level … and what better way than to apply to ABC’s Shark Tank. In September of 2013, I found myself walking down that scary shark infested hallway into a stare off with 5 of the harshest millionaire investors in the world. I’d never been more nervous in my entire life. When I proclaimed I was going to change the population with my reverse engineered online dating business, serial entrepreneur and Dallas Mavericks owner, Mark Cuban, rolled his eyes, called me delusional and immediately snapped, “I’m out.” Billionaire investor, Kevin O’Leary, demanded that I quit my “hobby” and shoot my business—my passion– like a rabid dog. After getting shot down by all five Sharks, I looked them in the eye and said, “Trust that you’ll all see me again.” Although those final bold words of mine ended up on the cutting room floor (adding insult to injury), in the 48 hours after the broadcast, Cheekd.com received a record breaking 100K unique visitors and our inbox filled up with thousands of emails insisting that the “Sharks” were “out of their minds” for not investing. Since the Shark Tank aired last February, I became even more focused on my goal and found the missing link from years before. I’ve gotten a CTO on board who’s helped facilitate and finance the new face and technology behind the new Cheekd. The newly launched dating app allows users to solve missed connections with a new technology that was not available when the patented Cheekd idea was launched in 2010. It was only a matter of time and I’m thankful I didn’t take the Sharks advice to quit and move on. Rebuilding the new Cheekd has been the biggest accomplishment in my entrepreneurial journey. I’m on a ramp right now and I’m finally ready to fly!

2) New Location

The biggest business accomplishment I have made this year is opening up in Seattle, Washington, and Dallas, Texas. As a small business owner, I struggled through 2014 with managing multiple locations in the field of marketing consulting. The reason being that marketing is a people business ­and the people that represent your brand need constant contact, which is hard to do as your business gets bigger and bigger. Given that I am the founder, many employees still look for regular chats with me, even though they may have managers. It’s hard to get around to everyone and grow the business at the same time. Somehow, this year I have worked out how to do that, but it has taken a lot of failures in order to achieve the positive result we have today.

3) Hitting Our Goal

January is typically a slow month for our business. Each month we have a sales goal we strive to reach as a company, and just as every other month, we aimed a little high (so we had something to work for) but not so high that it was unrealistic. We almost never hit our January goal, and this year we went above and beyond. I attribute our success to our constant emphasis on good customer service and the new forms of marketing we’ve been trying out- such as paid Facebook/Twitter advertising, SEO specifics, and press releases with a new service. We celebrated with a big catered lunch, and plan to meet our February goal as well.

4) Growth

We grew. We hired more people. We made more money, but most importantly – we saved people’s dreams! The restoration business isn’t just about repairing the damage after a disaster, it’s about giving people a fresh start at living the American dream in the homes they have worked hard to buy, raise a family from, and grow old in. We take pride in knowing that our services have helped give people back their dignity, peace of mind, and the place to hang their hat.

5) Social Media

We have had great results from conducting social media giveaways on our Facebook page. Not only have they helped us expand the followings on all of our social media channels, but they have also given us the opportunity to really engage with our customers on a very personal, 1:1 level. When customers comment on our giveaway statuses and posts, we always respond back and have a fun and insightful conversation with them.

6) Facebook Ads

Facebook ad campaigns have been extremely successful in helping us grow our customer base. Because we are able to target people with our ads according to certain demographics, locations, and whether or not a person is already a fan of Isabelle Grace Jewelry, we are able to reach the exact people who are more likely to become new customers or repeat purchasers. We also always make sure to include a special discount code for Facebook fans in our ads as well, which has resulted in many new fans and customers.

7) Book Deal

I was offered a book deal with Penguin Random House, the world’s largest publisher. I achieved this because, after owning a business that served the corporate arena for two decades, I completely reinvented myself in 2003. I gave up my business and began teaching the prosperity laws that I used to overcome my “lack” consciousness and become an entrepreneur. My Feel Free to Prosper teachings have since earned a large international following. I learned that if we follow our heart and use our knowledge and experience to help others, our destiny will be revealed and we will be guided to our life’s purpose – at any age.

8) Growth

Our proudest accomplishment, so far, in 2015 is our 70% Year over Year Growth after the successful relaunch of our website just in time for the holidays and surpassing the $3,000,000 trailing 12 month revenue mark – not a bad start to the year! We’re now drawing salaries and profitable and getting company paid benefits. How we did this? #1 fierce commitment to customer service = lot of fans, #2 successful website redesign, #3 growing niche industry (pickleball).

9) 2 Things

(1) I was a contributor to a recently released book “Selling On The Green: the art of building trusted relationships and growing your business on the golf course”. My contribution outlines the lessons learned about business and life from growing up playing golf. In addition, it features how I build relationships for clients and myself by playing in charity golf tournaments. A blog I wrote, Lessons from the Links, was included in addition to a podcast interview. (2) My own book is coming out this year! It includes poems I wrote throughout my life beginning at age 12. I never felt heard growing up and didn’t think anyone could understand what I was going through so poetry became my therapy. I never intended for my poems to be read until I encountered friends going through similar circumstances. It’s no coincidence that I tell stories for a living as a Public Relations professional. I know the importance of stories and the need to feel heard. This book is a full-circle moment for me as it will help empower individuals to share their stories. Whether it’s through writing, painting, music or dancing everyone has a story someone in the world needs to hear.

]]>http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/19/8-entrepreneurs-explain-their-biggest-accomplishments-in-2015/feed/0Entrepreneurs Create Boots for Thursday and Beyondhttp://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/19/entrepreneurs-create-boots-thursday-beyond/
http://hear.ceoblognation.com/2015/02/19/entrepreneurs-create-boots-thursday-beyond/#commentsThu, 19 Feb 2015 14:00:05 +0000http://hear.ceoblognation.com/?p=13429Being an entrepreneur and business owner is all about digging your boots in and getting the job done. For Nolan Walsh and Connor Wilson, creating the right boot for that job was what they wanted to do. As co-founders of Thursday Boot Company, Nolan and Connor aim to make the best boots possible at a fair price. We had the chance to sit down and learn more about their business, experiences with Kickstarter, and why their business is unique.

Why did you start your business?

We were frustrated with the current market offering and thought it would be fun! Connor and I met at Columbia Business School and opted to work full-time on Thursday Boot Company instead of summer internships. Our mission was simple: we wanted to build the best possible boots and deliver them at the best possible value.

How did you come up with your business name?

We wanted to build a boot that had the durability and longevity of a work boot, but the sophistication and aesthetic design of a fashion boot. That versatility is perfectly encapsulated by our favorite day of the week — Thursday. On Thursdays we work hard but never know where the nights might take us. In our Thursday Boots we know we will be putting our best foot forward whether we are in Williamsburg or on Wall Street.

How was your experience with Kickstarter?

Overall our experience was very positive- we raised $276,610 in one month and became the most funded footwear crowdfunding campaign ever. While many fashion brands have stayed away from crowdfunding because of the associated transparency, we chose Kickstarter because we wanted to give people a chance to see who we really are and to share as much as possible about our boots. Crowdfunding is a great way to create a community around a brand, but I couldn’t recommend it to everyone. We genuinely felt that we have the best product on the market at the best value, so we were excited for the chance to engage supporters and critics in honest conversation. At the same time, we felt that we could have that honest conversation while maintaining the aspiration of a Thursday. Crowdfunding is a great resource for new brands that are willing to be transparent and actively want to engage potential supporters on a personal level.

What makes your business unique?

We offer something new in a product category in need of change. Our philosophy is simple- we want it all. Comfort, style, durability, versatility, and honest pricing. Where other brands choose to cut corners, we invest. We select the best materials for our handcrafted boots: premium leathers from the best tanneries in North America, Goodyear welt construction that ensures a virtually waterproof seal and the option to re-sole, and full glove leather interior lining that provides luxury quality comfort. Our other signature features – like cork bed midsoles that conform to your foot, low-profile studded rubber outsoles, and premium flat wax laces – result in a super premium quality boot that is suitable in the boardroom or barroom…or wherever your Thursdays may take you.

What opportunity did you see and how did you capitalize on the opportunity?

We saw the opportunity to offer high quality boots at an unbeatable value, and to tell a different story for our generation. ‘Thursday’ is not another heritage boot company or a “cut-out-the-middleman” ecommerce company. We make classic products for the modern generation, and we see tremendous opportunity for growth. We started Thursday Boot Company 6 months ago, and in the last 3 months we have been able to ship 2,000 boots to 48 states and 20 different countries. We capitalized on the opportunity by steadfastly focusing on product and customer experience. By focusing on these two things we’ve been able to spend next to nothing on advertising and have built an awesome community around our brand.

What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?

Find a good business partner and work on something you are passionate about. Starting something from scratch takes a tremendous amount of effort. It’s a lot easier to sacrifice your time and health if you are working with people you respect on something you care about. I would also highly recommend buying a pair of Thursday Boots. If you are going to bootstrap your business on a shoestring budget, you are going to need high quality footwear for stomping around town in rain, sleet, or shine!